About Jason Thibeault

Hi! I'm a tech guy, skeptic, feminist, gamer and atheist, and love OSS and science of all stripes. I enjoy a good bit of whargarbl now and again, and will occasionally even seek it out. I am also apparently responsible for the death of common sense on the internet. My bad.

I have opinions. So do you. You want to share them with me. I would like to do likewise. Please don't expect a platform for proselytizing that will go unchecked and unchallenged, though. Contact me via the clicky thingies under my banner.

The commenting rules are simple: don't piss me off. This rule has worked for me for a decade; I have never found a need for any other rule, because any other rules leads to rules-lawyering. Just remember -- this is my property, not yours.

More random Formspring questions

Some more random Formspring questions I’ve gotten and answered. Please do ask me anything, either by contacting me directly or via the anonymous box on the left. Especially philosophical questions, I love those. Oh, and questions about controversial topics. I’ll give you a straight answer for just about anything, too. And if you earnestly want to learn about something you’re unfamiliar with, if I can help you learn it, I’ll do my best.

Can you truly love someone but find it hard to live with him/her?
I don’t see why not. Love is familiarity, and familiarity breeds contempt. How many relationships have you heard of, where over time the tiny things get on your loved one’s nerves to the point where you snap?

It’s probably not a terribly healthy situation, though. If you plan on staying with this person for any length of time, you need open communications — even about what aggravates you. ESPECIALLY about what aggravates you. If you don’t have that level of communication, then love will turn to contempt in a hurry.

Hope that helps!

If your life was turned into a movie, what actor would play the role of you?
I’d like to say Wil Wheaton, but that’s only because I have a mancrush on him. Though, for accuracy, the younger and more gawky version of him, circa Wesley Crusher.

Have you read the entire Bible or any other religious writing as a whole? How important do you find it to have read them in order to support your arguments as an atheist?
I have read the King James Version of the New Testament twice (or three times, memory fails — let’s say at least twice), cover to cover; the first, sometime after I had discovered that I could read and understand and enjoy Shakespeare outside of class, meaning I suspect I was a capable reader when I first took it on. I do find that it helps if you’re trying to prove that the Bible has a passage to support any viewpoint whatsoever — even ones in contradiction to the Commandments — but I do not find that it informs my arguments as an atheist. It did help me to become an atheist, though. I count reading and understanding the Bible as one of the chief catalysts for understanding that it is nothing but a very old storybook that purports to have a monopoly on morality.

Now, the majority of people I encounter who attempt to proselytize to me, do so from a Christian standpoint. Having read the KJV I do have a relatively strong grasp of the arguments that these specific theists will use, though this doesn’t mean I find myself on particularly unfamiliar territory when, say, a creationist Muslim attempts to debate whether there’s a god. I have noticed that most arguments against a naturalistic worldview take the form of, “X is unproven, therefore god is the answer, therefore that god must be my specific conception of it.” You don’t need a background in their specific religious text to recognize that as a false dichotomy — e.g. just because science has an insufficient answer doesn’t mean your specific god must be true, because there aren’t just two choices. There are as many variations on theism as there are theists, literally.

Now, you can show the specific gods they postulate are specifically unlikely if you understand what properties the religious text ascribe to that god, which does make any such debate easier. But in general, understanding that objective investigation of the universe and its properties — in other words, SCIENCE — is the only epistemology that has ever granted humankind any measure of progress and truth, is really the only support to my arguments as an atheist that I need.

How do you manage being like you are? (:
Oh, it’s tough, I know. But I manage. I manage.

What’s the most liberating thing you’ve done? by minnelle
Not answering this question properly. It’s been hanging over my head for two weeks, becoming something of a ball and chain. By not answering it properly, I’m liberating myself from it.

How do you and pixelsnake maintain your awesome levels of sexy awesomeness? Since we do not have an “evil tardis” (because we are evil schemers with diabolical plans after-all), are you worried of us four causing a massive fun-overload when we meet up? by Tim3p0
That’s a distinct possibility. In fact, it could very well shear the fabric of space and time, resulting in either The Doctor or Cap’n Jack paying us a visit. I hope it’s not Cap’n Jack, though, because, while I like you guys and all, I think it would just turn into one big orgy.

Isn’t It Annoying When People Type Like This, Capitalizing Every Word?
Yes. Yes it is.

well now…why would you call yourself an ass?
AssHOLE. I called myself an assHOLE in my profile. Get it right. (Because I so am. Come on, don’t tell me that wasn’t an asshole-ish way to answer your question!)

Could you go a week without Twitter? If so, how would you waste your time without it?
I seriously doubt I could, now that I’m so hooked. I have plenty of ways of wasting time, though. Do not underestimate my ability to find odd projects to waste my time on. Like Facebook, blogging, fighting with idiots on forums, spending more time on video games, catching up on reading, harassing my cats, programming, taking twenty showers a day…

How is life in Canada?
It’s lovely up here. The growing season started almost two weeks early though, and fire ants are marching their way through Nova Scotia (well out of their seasonal territory, you’d think!), but it’s livable for the time being. Dunno how it’ll be in fifty years, but there you have it.

Also, universal health care is great. If you’re asking how life is here, I’d imagine you’re not from Canada, so chances are high that you’re from the States, so I just wanted to point out that health care as a right is wonderful. 😉

There’s lots of Canadians (snowbirds) in South Florida during winter. Ever partake in the migration? by Bubblypoo
I haven’t! But Jodi and I know a number of Floridians via Twitter, so the draw to pay a visit is getting stronger and stronger.

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About the author

Hi! I'm a tech guy, skeptic, feminist, gamer and atheist, and love OSS and science of all stripes. I enjoy a good bit of whargarbl now and again, and will occasionally even seek it out. I am also apparently responsible for the death of common sense on the internet. My bad.

I have opinions. So do you. You want to share them with me. I would like to do likewise. Please don't expect a platform for proselytizing that will go unchecked and unchallenged, though. Contact me via the clicky thingies under my banner.

The commenting rules are simple: don't piss me off. This rule has worked for me for a decade; I have never found a need for any other rule, because any other rules leads to rules-lawyering. Just remember -- this is my property, not yours.